Train up a Child

I'm not sure what Deving thought, but I am postive that he was quite impressed.

Well, we have just 10 days until we leave. Guess what we have been doing lately? You guessed it... packing and storing, packing and storing, and packing and storing. It really is a bigger job than one might expect. And once we get to Costa Rica we will be unpacking and moving in, unpacking and moving in, and unpacking and moving in. And the moral of the story is, don't expect too many posts during this time :).

Thanks for all of those who left kind comments about my Grandpa's passing. We were able to drive down to NC for the viewing and funeral, and they were both very nice.

Notice verse nine.

Grandpa's three daughters say "goodbye."

My brother Benjamin was the pianist for the funeral.

Home in Heaven

Two posts ago I shared a couple of pictures of Grandpa Kaufman, my spiritual hero. Tonight, Grandpa is in heaven. He passed away peacefully at 11:12 this morning. All five of his children were with him, and he woke up from a 24-hour coma about three minutes before he died. My mom said that he recognized those with him, and that it was a beautiful moment.

We will be heading down to North Carolina early tomorrow morning. The viewing is tomorrow night, and the funeral is Saturday morning.

I will really miss Grandpa's prayers.

My mom is the first child, I am the first grandchild, and Devin is the first great-grandchild.

"Tis the Season"

Today was the first day of deer season in PA, and yes, I shot my deer. I was hunting with Missy's two brothers and dad, and we saw more deer than we have seen on opening day for quite a while. I can't upload the picture of my deer right now, but here are some other pictures for all you hunters.

Happy Thanksgiving

In a few hours we will be eating turkey, lots and lots of turkey... (I still think that the Pilgrims should have shot some wild boars instead of turkeys). Then tomorrow we will be eating turkey leftovers, lots and lots of turkey leftovers... Then on Saturday...well, you get the picture. I can assure you that I won't be taking cold turkey sandwiches into the woods with me Monday. Anyway, if I don't get these pictures from our last visit with our grandparents posted now, you probably wouldn't ever see them. Have a WONDERFUL Thanksgiving!

My Grandpa, My Hero

"O.K., I have had enough of pictures!"

A Thoughtful Card

Some friends that we met during deputation, Br. and Sis. Eckroth, just sent us this card for Thanksgiving. It is a perfect example of becoming involved in a missionary's life, which means so much to us missionaries. Thank you, Br. and Sis. Eckroth.

Commissioning Service

Life is busy, busy, busy right now. We got home late last Friday from our visit to North Carolina and Virginia. On Sunday we had our commissioning service, and yesterday we had Thanksgiving with my side of the family. I have tons of pictures to share, so it's catch-up time.

Our commissioning service was very special for both Missy and me. Br. Steve Mowery, our missions director from our Penn View days, was the special speaker. Br. Steve Hight drove in all the way from Indiana to do the actual commissioning, and several of our family members shared in music. We want to say a special "thanks" to each one who participated.




I want you to notice the picture above and the picture to the left. My mother-in-law is crying at the thought of me leaving, and my sister-in-law is giving me a big hug. See, their true feelings do come out, even though they would never tell you just how special I am.

Winding Down

We are in West Virginia, and last night was the first of our final three deputation services. In a little while we will be heading to North Carolina, where we have a service and will be spending time with my grandparents and my mom's side of the family. Wednesday we head up to Virginia for a last service and a visit with Missy's grandparents. This will be our last time to see our family living down south, so we are looking forward to it. Devin has been doing well, but he is getting tired of traveling. Here are a couple of pictures from our services last Sunday.

And from a couple of days ago...

I Don't Know... I Can't Think of a Title

As a Christian, have you stopped today and thought of how many things haven't and won't change even though the election didn't have the outcome you may have desired? Something to think about.

I'm sorry to say that my blogging has been falling by the wayside. With just 54 days until we leave, other things are taking our attention. We spent a good part of today going through stuff and deciding what to store, what to take, and what to get rid of. Tomorrow we will be washing our windows, blinds, and curtains in preparation for my cousin and wife to move into our trailer once we leave. But instead of continuing to bore you with our agendas, I will post some pictures our our little guy.

Devin isn't worried about gas prices.

E-mail the "LA Times"

I just dropped the "LA Times" a note, asking them why they won't release the Obama/Khalidi tape. I found their address, readers.rep@latimes.com, on Fox's website. Maybe you would like to write to them also.

A Scary Evening

Thank the Lord for His protecting hand over my mother (Hannah McDowell) this evening. She was hit pretty badly on her way home from work, but it could have been a lot worse. Although she does not have very serious injuries, she is in a lot of pain. This evening after she returned from the ER, she started coughing and felt a pop in her side followed by excruciating pain. They think that she might have a broken rib. I'm sure she and Dad would appreciate your prayers.

Billy Graham's Prayer For Our Nation

Missy's aunt passed this along, and I thought it was pretty good.

'Heavenly Father, we come before you today to ask your forgiveness and to seek your direction and guidance. We know Your Word says, 'Woe to those who call evil good,' but that is exactly what we have done. We have lost our spiritual equilibrium and reversed our values. We have exploited the poor and called it the lottery. We have rewarded laziness and called it welfare. We have killed our unborn and called it choice. We have shot abortionists and called it justifiable. We have neglected to discipline our children and called it building self esteem. We have abused power and called it politics. We have coveted our neighbor's possessions and called it ambition. We have polluted the air with profanity and pornography and called it freedom of expression. We have ridiculed the time-honored values of our forefathers and called it enlightenment. Search us, Oh God, and know our hearts today; cleanse us from every sin and Set us free. Amen!'

Another Picture from the Mighty Hunter

That's right, you may call me Nimrod if you would like. After all, how many hunters do you know who have outsmarted a foot-long beauty like this. I took this monster down with a single shot from my faithful old .22. First a snake, now a frog, tomorrow a water buffalo; you never know what my pond might produce.

All in a Day's Work

It All Makes Sense Now!

Man, why couldn't I have figured this out on my own? Maybe Obama is friends with John Avery Whitaker, and uses the imagination station! And oh yes, I just read that Obama now has paid adds in video games such as Need for Speed, where you are racing along and see and Obama billboard.

Back Safe and Sound

We're home, and I can tell you that there is nothing like home sweet home. Although our tour went well, it is good to be back. I kept track (or actually our GPS did) of how many hours and miles we spent on the road, and we traveled over 3,000 miles in over 50 hours driving time in three weeks to be in 15 services. Thank God for traveling protection!

I know that posts over the last three weeks have been few and far between, so I will try to get back on track. Hopefully this will pull us out of our present viewing slump :).

Our last service, held at the Beauty of Holiness Church in Jackson, OH, was quite interesting. I mis-calculated our driving time there, and we ended up arriving 30 min. after the service started. The congregation was very understanding, and we had a good service in spite of the fact. It wasn't until after the service that I remembered my quartet service at this same church four or five years ago. In route to that service, our van had a flat, and our group ended up being way late for that service too! Coincidence?

That night we had a very nice stay with the Craces. Br. Crace is 62 years old, his heart is 55, and one of his kidneys is 41 (I think I got the numbers right). It is a miracle that he is alive today, but he has been going for over 20 years on a transplanted heart. He does beautiful woodworking, as you can see by this hutch and corner cabinet.

In closing, Devin hangs out in TN.

Still Alive

Deputation continues, and we are still alive. This tour has been our busiest schedule by far. Our first week out had us in six services in five days, and from this Wednesday until Sunday we will have been in five more services in five days. One answer to prayer on this trip is that we have been able to raise more shares than normal, and God has blessed us with several very good services. Another highlight of this trip has been a chance to spend several days with Missy's brother and wife, Scott and Sarah Susan. Devin has enjoyed playing with his little cousin Ethan.

On Thursday of last week we had the privilege of speaking in a chapel service at Union Bible College. That was the first time for Missy and me to spend time on the campus (I had driven by it when I traveled with a quartet from Penn View). I'm still partial to Penn View, but it was exciting to see how God is working at this sister Bible college.

I went hunting this morning for the first time this season. Actually, Scott went hunting and I took a video camera. Since I do not have an OH hunting license, we were hoping to make millions by my being able to capture Scott shooting a monster buck on video. Unfortunately we were skunked (for you non-hunters, that means that we didn't see any deer, not that we were sprayed by a skunk). It was still fun though, and I know that the deer back in PA are already getting scared over the fact that I will be back in town next weekend.

Well, enough of my rambling. Here are a few pictures in closing. We would appreciate your prayers as we finish the last week of this tour.

Devin's new little girlfriend (and yes, they are holding hands)

Go-carting at the Dotsons

Devin gives Cousin Ethan a kiss

Bedtime

Too many hours on the road

Deputation Continues

Devin and cousin Julissa discuss politics.

We had a beautiful room at the bed and breakfast where we stayed this past weekend.

Do you know anyone else who can do this?

The Adams, McDowells, and Pastor and Mrs. Snyder pose for the camera.

We will be leaving for a three-week trip in about an hour, having services in PA, OH, IN, KY, and TN. Please pray for us as we fulfill a very busy schedule.

The 3-foot Catch

That's right, I had a 3-foot catch out of my pond a couple of days ago. The only problem was that my catch was a snake, not a bass. That's right, I caught this guy (or gal, I haven't figured out how to tell on a snake). It was sticking its head out of the water, so I tried to snag it. And to my surprise, I did snag it with my superior fishing skills. Now, can you tell me what kind it was (was in the past tense since I decapitated it)? We think it might have been a water moccasin, but are not sure.